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Social Sciences

  • Essays about Hurricane Katrina by Wynton Marsalis and others appear in new book

    The weak federal emergency response to Hurricane Katrina fits a pattern of reduced federal government responsibility for public well-being, according to the editor of a new collection of essays about Katrina. John Brown Childs, a professor of sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and editor of the new book Hurricane Katrina: Response and…

  • Soil ecologist investigates the role of plant roots in regulating carbon cycling and reducing global warming

    Soil ecologist Weixin Cheng is at the leading edge of scientific efforts to quantify the impacts of plant roots on the cycling of carbon between the atmosphere, where carbon dioxide contributes to global warming, and terrestrial ecosystems, where large amounts of carbon are stored in soil organic matter. Cheng, an associate professor of environmental studies…

  • Secretary of State Bruce McPherson speaks at UCSC Nov. 17 at 4 p.m.

    The community is invited to attend a free public talk by California Secretary of State Bruce McPherson at 4 p.m. on Thursday, November 17, in the Colleges Nine and Ten Multipurpose Room at the University of California, Santa Cruz. McPherson will deliver a talk entitled “The Importance of Voting in the Democratic Process,” as the…

  • Organic rose care demystified in new book by UCSC Garden Manager Orin Martin

    Master gardener Orin Martin cuts a lush bouquet of fresh, organically grown garden roses for his eldest daughter each year on her birthday. What’s unusual is that she was born November 9. Better yet, when Martin sits down to Thanksgiving dinner, a rose-based bouquet often adorns his table. Impossible, you say? Not so, replies Martin,…

  • Kids with access to a home computer are more likely to graduate, digital divide study finds

    Access to a home computer increases the likelihood that children will graduate from high school, but blacks and Latinos are much less likely to have a computer at home than are whites, according to a new study by a researcher at the University of California, Santa Cruz, that also found the digital divide is even…

  • Public forum on education and state funding at UCSC October 25

    For Immediate Release SANTA CRUZ, CA–The community is invited to attend a free public forum about the state budget crisis and its long-term impact on funding for education on Tuesday, October 25, at 4:30 p.m. in the Merrill Cultural Center at UC Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz Superintendent of Schools Diane Siri will be joined by…

  • Día de los Muertos ceremony takes place at Santa Cruz museum on October 25

    Día de los Muertos, the Mexican holiday during which individuals, families, and communities gather together to remember and honor deceased loved ones, will be celebrated at a Santa Cruz museum on Tuesday, October 25. The event–open to the public–will take place from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Museum of Art and History at the…

  • International economists gather at UCSC Oct. 14-15 for annual conference

    For Immediate Release SANTA CRUZ, CA–The Eighth Annual International Economics Conference will take place October 14-15 at the University Center at UC Santa Cruz. The event is sponsored each year by UCSC’s Santa Cruz Center for International Economics (SCCIE) to facilitate the exchange of ideas and the presentation of new research. With participants from the…

  • Mystery Spot demonstrates power of perception, UC Santa Cruz psychologist explains

    SANTA CRUZ, CA–For years, UC Santa Cruz psychology professor Bruce Bridgeman has taken college students to the Mystery Spot, a popular local tourist attraction, to demonstrate how the human brain works. Tourists flock to the Mystery Spot to enjoy the “puzzling variations in gravity, perspective, height and more,” leaving baffled and perplexed by the apparent…

  • Three UCSC professors and two graduate students honored for teaching

    SANTA CRUZ, CA–Three professors and two graduate students at the University of California, Santa Cruz, were honored for their teaching today (Thursday, September 29). The Division of Social Sciences presented the division’s Distinguished Teaching Award, known as the “Golden Apple Award,” during the dean’s annual fall convocation. The awards recognize outstanding undergraduate teaching in the…

  • Faye Crosby receives top honor in social psychology, becoming third UCSC professor to win prestigious Kurt Lewin Award

    SANTA CRUZ, CA–Faye J. Crosby, professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an expert on affirmative action, has received the Kurt Lewin Award, one of the most prestigious honors in social psychology. Crosby received the award from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI), also known as Division…

  • UCSC New Teacher Center director receives national education award

    Ellen Moir, executive director of the New Teacher Center at the University of California, Santa Cruz, received the 2005 Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education today (Tuesday, September 27) for her pioneering work in new teacher professional development. Also receiving the McGraw Prize this year were Barbara Taylor Bowman, cofounder of the Erikson Institute,…

Last modified: Apr 29, 2025